Ken Loach’s “Daniel Blake” Wins Cannes 2016

After ten days during which a large number of films scored vocal booing during critics screenings, the Cannes Film Festival has come to a close with the top prizes being awarded tonight.

Ken Loach took his second Palme d’Or with his “I, Daniel Blake” taking the top honor of the festival. Runners-up were Xavier Dolan’s “It’s Only The End Of The World” with the Grand Prize and Andrea Arnold’s “American Honey” with the Jury Prize. Joao Paulo Miranda Maria’s “The Girl Who Danced With The Devil” scored a special mention.

Another big winner was Asghar Farhadi’s “The Salesman” which scored best screenplay and best actor for Shahab Hosseini. Best Director was a tie between Cristian Mungiu (“Graduation”) and Olivier Assayas (“Personal Shopper”), Jaclyn Jose won Best Actress for “Ma’Rosa”, “Divines” took the Camera d’Or, and Jean-Pierre Leaud won the Palme d’Honneur.

George Miller headed up the jury this year and said his jury now holds the record for the longest deliberation time ever in the festival’s history.

Despite the awards, the festival this year will likely be remembered for the number of films that scored booing and jeering including Sean Penn’s “The Last Face,” Nicolas Winding Refn’s “The Neon Demon,” and the aforementioned “Personal Shopper” and “It’s Only the End of the World”.